Luxury Boca Raton Realtor at Center of Lawsuits

Marcy Javor is among a handful of top real estate agents who deal in one of Boca Raton’s most expensive communities, the Royal Palm Yacht & Country Club.

Javor promotes herself as part of the leading half percent of agents in the country, declaring that she’s closed more than $1.6 billion in sales.

“Luxury real estate moves fast, and having the right agent makes all the difference,” she wrote in a recent post on social media.

But Javor, who hangs her license with Boca Raton-based Signature One Luxury Estates, is accused of behavior associated with another type of real estate agent.

Javor is tied up in litigation with former clients and is under investigation by the state. She is accused of misrepresenting herself as a broker, failing to disclose material changes to agreements with clients, lying about having buyers at the ready, and publishing misleading and inaccurate information about properties, court filings allege.

They are allegations that she disputes.

It all points to ongoing issues that buyers, sellers and agents have to handle on their own because the industry is under-regulated, experts say. It’s especially true in Florida, where more than 320,000 brokers and real estate agents are licensed, outnumbering attorneys four to one.

Javor is fighting back. Last year, Signature One Luxury Estates sued a former client, Arnold Galman, as part of a lawsuit that included Boca Raton’s top broker, David Roberts and his Royal Palm Properties. (Roberts and Royal Palm are no longer parties in the complaint.) Two months later, in July, Javor filed a defamation lawsuit against Galman.

From futures to real estate

Javor has been a licensed real estate agent in Florida for about a decade, after she exited the futures industry in 2015.

In her application with the state to become a real estate agent, she allegedly failed to disclose that in her prior career as a commodities broker, she had been forced to withdraw from the National Futures Association and was ordered not to register as an associated person or principal of an NFA member for a period of four years.

The NFA found that Javor and her companies made misleading sales solicitations and provided false information, violating the NFA’s compliance rules.

Javor said in a statement to The Real Deal that she had already planned to leave the business before that complaint, which she said “was based on a partner who sent out information without my knowledge.”

Now, Javor is under investigation by Florida’s Department of Business and Professional Regulation, which oversees and regulates the real estate industry, among other professions.

DBPR is investigating the allegation that Javor obtained her license by fraud and perjury, according to a copy of a complaint submitted to the state.

A spokesperson for DBPR declined to comment, and said it could not “confirm or deny” the existence of complaints filed against Javor because the information obtained during an investigation is confidential. No complaints are listed on Javor’s license. They would only appear on the state’s website if a state panel determines there was probable cause, and rules against the agent or broker.

As in many states, DBPR is the only government authority that can revoke a license, issue fines or suspensions, and few agents and brokers face serious repercussions among the total complaints filed, a TRD investigation last year found. It’s also a self-regulating system: The state will typically only open an investigation if other brokers, agents or consumers file legally sufficient complaints.

Oftentimes, the most effective recourse that consumers or fellow real estate agents and brokers have is to sue.

In 2023, two lawsuits were filed against Javor. Matthew Epstein, a former client, sued in July, and in November, Quentin Gillette and Beth Gillette, founders of a utility systems contractor called PowerGrid Services, filed a separate complaint.

The four complaints, including the defamation lawsuit against Galman and the one Signature One filed, are still open, according to Palm Beach County Circuit Court filings.

Epstein lawsuit

Epstein, CEO of real estate development and investment firm Delray Beach-based Primark Partners, sued Javor over her involvement in his $5.6 million purchase and subsequent listing of the planned spec mansion at 207 West Coconut Palm Road in Boca’s Royal Palm in 2021.

Epstein alleges that Javor misrepresented herself as a licensed broker and failed to disclose that she edited a listing agreement. She allegedly falsely represented that she only changed the price, when in reality she altered the commission structure and terms, according to the lawsuit. The edited agreement included conflicting terms saying that Javor was required to share all offers with Epstein, but also that she had the right to withhold verbal offers, according to the lawsuit.

The complaint also alleges that Javor lied about having interested buyers, pushing Epstein to sign the listing agreement quickly. While Javor agreed via text to a 2 percent commission, her brokerage Signature One actually was paid a commission of 3 percent, or about $180,000, on a $5.6 million deal.

Javor also allegedly published inaccurate marketing materials about the property without submitting them to Epstein first, the lawsuit states. Javor allegedly acted “with the authority to execute the listing agreement, operate her real estate office, and make all decisions related to the marketing and listing of the property contrary to plaintiff’s instructions and objections.”

Javor and Signature One deny the allegations, court filings show.

Signature One and Javor’s attorney, Brian Koch of Holland & Knight, wrote in a motion late last year that Epstein “manufactured claims” to avoid his contractual obligations.

“To the extent that Epstein claims he did not review what he signed, that is 100% Epstein’s fault — and he is therefore barred from his own admitted negligence in not reviewing a contract before he signed it.”

Javor and Signature One filed a motion to compel Epstein to disclose the amounts paid for construction and improvements he made to the property. During his deposition in January, he testified that the project ran over budget and that he made special upgrades to justify a nearly $30 million asking price. The house is now listed with Roberts of Royal Palm Properties for the same price.

In a statement to TRD, Epstein said his complaint “speaks for itself.”

“The fact that Ms. Javor is countersuing me because she believes she’s entitled to a million dollar-plus commission without ever bringing a single written offer is shameful and puts other realtors in a bad light,” he said in the statement. “If Ms. Javor, or any agent for that matter, ever produced a buyer that met my terms and closed the transaction, I would be more than happy to pay the commission that was rightfully earned. However, I refuse to pay for work not performed or held hostage by anyone.”

Signature One’s broker, Ben Schachter, said in a statement that “people can say anything” in a lawsuit. “The evidence in the case refutes Mr. Epstein’s allegations,” he said.

Gillettes’ lawsuit

The Gillettes’ lawsuit, filed in late 2023, alleges that Javor, Signature One, Dennis Lynde and Beaches MLS misrepresented the year the home they bought at 231 Thatch Palm Drive was built. The Gillettes were on the hunt for a newly built home, and based on the listing and a home inspection report provided by Javor, they believed the property was constructed in 2021.

The Gillettes entered into a contract with the seller, Lynde, to purchase the house for $10 million, which included a $300,000 commission to Signature One, according to court filings. After closing, the Gillettes then spent about $1.5 million to make improvements to the home, so they could potentially flip it for $15 million, filings show. When they began interviewing brokers to market and sell the house, they discovered the original structure was built in 1971.

“As a Realtor, I was not involved in daily construction, but had been advised and was of the belief that the home was newly built,” Javor said in a statement provided to TRD. “I understand several million dollars went into new additions and the major construction that took place between 2019 and 2021.”

The Gillettes ended up selling the property for $10 million, a “substantial loss,” they allege in their complaint. They allege fraud, negligent misrepresentation, breach of contract and unjust enrichment.

The definition of “new construction” is at the center of Javor and Signature One’s questioning in a deposition of Beth Gillette.

“That house should have been listed as a remodel,” she said in her deposition.

Lawsuits with Arnold Galman

About a year ago, property management mogul Galman began working with Javor. Galman entered into a buyer/broker agreement with Signature One, agreeing to work exclusively with the brokerage for any purchases in Florida for six months. If any deals were to arise, he would owe Signature a 3 percent commission, plus a transaction fee.

A few days after signing that agreement, Galman signed a contract to pay about $11.8 million for the waterfront mansion at 2348 East Maya Drive in the Royal Palm community. The sale closed in April.

Their agreement is at the heart of two lawsuits and at least one counterclaim.

Signature sued Galman to collect the commission it alleges it’s owed for the deal. The commission is being held in escrow due to the dispute.

In a separate complaint, Javor is suing Galman and his company, the Jenkintown, Pennsylvania-based Galman Group, alleging that he has “orchestrated a smear campaign … after his initial bullying and intimidation tactics proved unsuccessful.”

In his counterclaim, Galman said that he planned to withdraw his offer and recoup his initial deposit, because he believed the $11.8 million price was too high. But Javor convinced him she could find a buyer to flip the property for a profit of at least $500,000. If not, she would waive her entire commission, according to a letter signed by Javor, which is included in the counterclaim. Galman alleges that Signature One forged Gaiman’s name on the buyer/tenant broker agreement, without his knowledge or consent.

Galman’s attorney, Stephen Padula of Padula Bennardo Levine, told TRD that Galman expected Javor to represent his interests as his agent, but she did not, he said.

Galman refused to pay the commission, and threatened Javor with allegedly defamatory mailers.

In May, a month after the $11.8 million deal closed, Schachter emailed Galman and said that Javor didn’t have the authority to agree to waive her commission. Signature is also suing for a 3 percent commission on a separate deal, Galman’s $515,000 purchase of a townhouse in Boca Raton last May. Signature alleges Galman “intentionally circumvented” Javor’s brokerage.

Their battle quickly became unpleasant.

Galman emailed Javor, Leonard Albanese of Albanese Builders and Schachter that he planned to expose Javor’s alleged “dishonesty and treachery.”

“Hire your lawyers — you are liars and dishonest !” an email he sent to her reads. “Marcy I am just getting started ~ you know the truth…. you flat out lied to me !”

An earlier version of this story incorrectly referred to the Gillettes as former clients of Javor. Javor represented the seller in that deal.